Whats The Count?

[Capt. Lyndon]

Deep, I couldn't agree with you more. If the closures were based on sound data, I would be much more understanding. But with the cutbacks and closures happening due to one group's political bs, that's what I have a problem with. It's not just Obama's administration, I understand that, the MSRA was signed into law under Bush administation, BUT for Obama to put someone as the head of Noaa who is associated so strongly with ANY aspect of fishery's, is just wrong. I wouldn't agree with someone who is associated with any fisherman's group being appointed, much less someone from an enviromentalist's group. The head of NOAA fishery's needs to be someone who is unbiased.

[luv2fish67]

This all sounds very much like the Fisheries & Oceans Dept. here in canada. They go out and do a bit of test fishing, and just because "They" don't catch many fish, they start making closures. Meanwhile, if they would just listen to the Com. guys and Rec. guys that are out there, they would have more accurate data on how many fish are "Really" out there. Same old story..... Fisheries & Oceans don't have a clue.

[Big Fish Billy]

The fisheries are not in a state that need the magnitude of shutdown they are in. Bad science or worse yet no science driving closures for nothing more than political posturing is destroying the sport and trade so much of this country depend on.

There were more people fishing harder in the 30's through the 60's than there are today and the stocks did just fine. Yes tighten some things but their arbitrary hog wash being shoved up our scuppers today is not the answer. Lets look at summer flounder "Fluke". It is estimated that the biomass today exceeds what it was dating back to the beginings of this country. Yet they squeeze tighter and tighter until the overpopulation kills itself off from starvation. The explosion of bass along with dogfish has decimated forage stocks and other species to near extinction.

Sorry, don't agree with that argument either. Don't know what the world population was back then, But I'm sure it's ten times at least by now. Couple that increase with Global markets that exist and demand has easily outstripped supply. Back in that day when you caught a bluefin tuna, and thousand pounders were the rule, you had to pay the coops and Japs to take them off your hands. Back then fishermen haad to fish harder, there were no fishfinders and other electronics to make fishing easier. But the discussion is good fodder for pissing and moaning here...I'd say the science is right on, and that is a lot better than the 30s and 60s as well.......

[Deep C]

Tuna are in trouble yes... A few things are... Makos, one of my target species included. If they shut them down I'd have to agree with their decision.
This isn't about them this about the healthy stocks randomly selected to be no goes. There are more bass, fluke, sea bass, tog, small groupers, than I have ever seen in my lifetime. You cant get any more crowded on the fluke grounds than it is. Literally carpeted... The striper population is so over the top that they have eaten all the winter flounder. Combine them with the dogfish and the forage species that used to be shared by the tuna and others are depleted to where I see a fraction of what once was. Those species aren't persued by us...
So your saying screw it? Hang up your fisning poles and take up golf? Oh wait aren't you worried that we're going to hurt the grass by doing that...

[Big Fish Billy]

...eeeyeah....I imagine the guys that used to hunt buffalo had about the same to say........until they were all gone....